Vehicle galley

ABSTRACT

A modular integrated galley in a passenger vehicle, including a mounting rack in the form of a vertical wall including upper, middle and lower storage areas, at least one storage slot extending laterally between the middle and lower storage areas for storing a work surface therein, and a latch for ejecting the work surface at least partially from the slot into a position for being further extended into a fully deployed position by a user. An elongate hinge that extends vertically along a mounted edge of the doors and is adapted for allowing the door to move 180 degrees of travel between its closed and open positions is also disclosed.

TECHNICAL FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a galley of the general type used in aircraftto prepare meals and beverages in-flight for aircraft passengers.Galleys are typically designed to be as compact as is practical, and tohave components such as work surfaces that may be moved when not in use.Within this requirement, galley designs must be adaptable to varyingsize and shape requirements, and accommodate a wide variety of food andbeverage products. In addition, energy efficiency is also importantsince the galleys' ovens and chillers are powered by either aircraftauxiliary power units or bleed power from one or more aircraft engines.Galleys are also often designed to accommodate and store galley cartswhen not in use. The present application provides several improvementsto galleys while maintaining advantages inherent in prior art designs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide a galley havingimproved galley cart doors and aesthetics;

It is another object of the invention to provide a galley havingimproved, integrated cart door compartment seals;

It is another object of the invention to provide a galley havingimproved cart door hinges;

It is another object of the invention to provide a galley having anintegrated, easily deployable work surface; and

It is another object of the invention to provide a galley that is easyto clean and service.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention are achieved byproviding a modular integrated galley in a passenger vehicle thatincludes a mounting rack in the form of a vertical wall including upper,middle and lower storage areas, at least one storage slot extendinglaterally between the middle and lower storage areas for storing a worksurface therein, and a latch for ejecting the work surface at leastpartially from the slot into a position for being further extended intoa fully deployed position by a user.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the latch includes a firstposition that unlocks the work surface in its stowed position and asecond position that ejects the work surface from the slot into theposition for being further extended into the fully deployed position bythe user.

According to another embodiment of the invention, a latch is provided onboth inboard and outboard sides of each work surface for simultaneousoperation by the user.

According to another embodiment of the invention the work surface in itsdeployed position comprises an extension of a stationary work counter.

According to another embodiment of the invention, a modular integratedgalley in a passenger vehicle is provided and includes a mounting rackin the form of a vertical wall including upper, middle and lower storageareas, the lower storage area defining a plurality of storage bays forreceiving a plurality of galley carts, each of the storage bays beingenclosed by a door with peripheral sealing surfaces cooperating withcomplementary sealing surfaces on peripheral sealing surfaces of thestorage bays for effecting a seal when the door is closed, and furtherincluding an elongate hinge extending vertically along a mounted edge ofthe doors and adapted for allowing the door to move 180 degrees oftravel between its closed and open positions.

According to another embodiment of the invention a lower door seal isadapted for engaging a galley deck when the door is closed and adaptedfor being raised into an upward position when the door is open.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the galley includes alower door seal adapted for engaging a galley deck when the door isclosed and adapted for being raised into an upward position when thedoor is open, and further including a magnet positioned on a side of thedoor opposite from the hinge and adapted to urge the lower door seal ina lateral and downwardly direction into a sealing position against thegalley deck as the door is closed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a galley according to one embodiment ofthe invention;

FIG. 2 is a lower front elevation of the galley shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the lower front of the galley, showingcart door hinges and hinge release;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view of a galley cart door in its full openposition;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the cart doors, particularlyshowing the cart door seals and the face-to-face configuration of thecart door seals;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of the lower door seal;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the galley cart doors in an openposition;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of the lower door seal,

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the galley cart doors in the closedposition; and

FIG. 10 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of the galley, particularlyillustrating deployment and use of the work surfaces with an insetshowing the work surface latch.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT AND BEST MODE

Referring now to the drawings, a galley 10 is shown in FIG. 1 andincludes upper, middle and lower storage areas 20, 40 and 60,respectively. The upper storage area 20 includes storage bays enclosedby doors 24 that move between open and closed positions.

The middle storage area 40 includes storage bays enclosed by doors 44that move between open and closed positions. The middle storage areaalso includes a central work area that includes a beverage brewingstation 46 with related appliances and deployable work surfaces 48 thatretract into storage slots when not in use.

The lower storage area 60 comprises bays for storage of galley carts,the doors 62 of which include several novel features set out in furtherdetail below. See also, FIGS. 2 and 3.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the galley cart door hinges 64 are fabricatedof high density plastic co-molded with steel sleeves to achieve bothlightweight and long-lasting strength. As also shown, the hinges 64 havea full 180 degrees of travel enabling the doors 62 to fold back flushwith the galley wall. Galley door seals 66 extend around the peripheryof the door frames and enable the doors 62 to close into a flush, sealedposition around the entire periphery of the doors 62. Note the recesses70 in the back wall of the doors 62 that accommodate the galley cartlatches 72.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, a lower door seal 74 engages the galley deckwhen the door 62 is closed and is raised into an upward position whenthe door 62 is open. The door 62 is retained in the open position bymagnets 76 mounted on the back side of the door 62. Each of the doors 62is so equipped. As is shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, when the door 62 is closeda magnet 78 located on the opposite side of the door 62 from the hinge64 pushes the lower door seal 74 laterally, causing magnetic oppositionto slide the lower door seal downwardly into sealing engagement with thegalley deck.

As shown in FIG. 10, work surfaces 48 are positioned in storage slots 50positioned beneath the principal work counter 52 when not in use.Latches 54 enable the work surfaces to be stowed flush with the counter52. Each latch is a two-position latch, the first movement of whichunlocks the work surface 48 and the second movement of which releasesand ejects the work surface 25 mm, providing sufficient purchase so thatthe attendant can then grasp the edge of the work surface 48 and pull itout to a full 300 mm extension for use. The process is repeated inreverse to stow the work surface 48.

A galley is disclosed above. Various details of the convertiblepassenger seat assembly may be changed, altered, revised or rearrangedwithout departing from the spirit and intended broad and general scopeof the invention. Furthermore, the foregoing description of exemplary orpreferred embodiments of the invention and the best mode for making,using and practicing the invention are provided for the purpose ofillustration only and not for the purpose of limitation. Instead, thescope of the invention is defined by the appended claims.

We claim:
 1. A modular integrated galley in a passenger vehicle,comprising: a mounting rack in the form of a vertical wall includingupper, middle and lower storage areas, at least one storage slotextending laterally between the middle and lower storage areas forstoring a work surface therein, and a latch for ejecting the worksurface at least partially from the slot into a position for beingfurther extended into a fully deployed position by a user.
 2. A modularintegrated galley according to claim 1, wherein the latch includes afirst position that unlocks the work surface in its stowed position anda second position that ejects the work surface from the slot into theposition for being further extended into the fully deployed position bythe user.
 3. A modular integrated galley according to claim 2, wherein alatch is provided on both inboard and outboard sides of each worksurface for simultaneous operation by the user.
 4. A modular integratedgalley according to claim 3, wherein the work surface in its deployedposition comprises an extension of a stationary work counter.
 5. Amodular integrated galley in a passenger vehicle, comprising: a mountingrack in the form of a vertical wall including upper, middle and lowerstorage areas, the lower storage area defining a plurality of storagebays for receiving a plurality of galley carts, each of the storage baysbeing enclosed by a door with peripheral sealing surfaces cooperatingwith complementary sealing surfaces on peripheral sealing surfaces ofthe storage bays for effecting a seal when the door is closed, andfurther including an elongate hinge extending vertically along a mountededge of the doors and adapted for allowing the door to move 180 degreesof travel between its closed and open positions.
 6. A modular integratedgalley according to claim 5, and including a lower door seal adapted forengaging a galley deck when the door is closed and adapted for beingraised into an upward position when the door is open.
 7. A modularintegrated galley according to claim 5, and including a lower door sealadapted for engaging a galley deck when the door is closed and adaptedfor being raised into an upward position when the door is open, andfurther including a magnet positioned on a side of the door oppositefrom the hinge and adapted to urge the lower door seal in a lateral anddownwardly direction into a sealing position against the galley deck asthe door is closed.